Teton Plein Air Painters: Honoring Tradition 2025

Diane Benefiel, 2025
Acrylic
8x10 in
$250.00

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We, as humans, can't appreciate where we're going unless we know where we've been. Tradition teaches us how we fit into the present moment. As an artist and student of local history, I honor tradition in an illustrative painting style (preferably en plein air) creating images of what living in Jackson Hole means to me. From old, weathered buildings still serving their purpose to seasonal changes; cottonwood trees surrounded by Spring dandelions or cattails reaching for a sunbeam on a cold February day. Tradition reminds us to watch for the subtle messages of Nature and survival 'at the fast end of the fast-slow continuum.'

Diane Benefiel, 2025
Acrylic
11x14 in
$350.00

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Diane Benefiel, 2025
Acrylic
14x11 in
$369.00

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Jude Chilen, 2025
Acrylic
16x24 in
$1500.00

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My painting of Mt Moran honors Thomas Moran, master of the conservative movement.

Patricia Feltz, 2025
Mixed Media
13x16 in
$250.00

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Patricia Feltz, 2025
Watercolor
14.25x17.25 in
$250.00

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Patricia Feltz, 2025
Watercolor
19.25x23 in
$300.00

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Eliot Goss, 2024
Oil
11x14 in
$250.00

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Eliot Goss, 2024
Oil
11x14 in
$250.00

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Heather Hansen, 2024
Oil
6x6 in
$200.00

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Heather Dawn Hansen paints to honor the deep-rooted connection between place and memory. Her work captures the moments that make her pause: the way snow settles into a drift, the light on a single mushroom, the hush of aspens before they let go of their leaves. These aren't just paintings of landscapes. They're records of time spent paying attention.Raised in Teton Valley, Idaho, and now living in a tiny house in Kelly, Wyoming, Heather's life has always been closely tied to the land. Her plein air practice reflects a long tradition of observing nature with care and reverence, and continuing that practice feels like both an offering and a way of belonging.She paints from life and from memory, blending what she sees with what she feels. Each piece is her way of slowing down and holding onto a moment that won't happen again, a quiet continuation of the tradition of honoring place through paint.

Heather Hansen, 2025
Oil
16x12 in
$480.00

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Heather Hansen, 2025
Oil
14x11 in
$420.00

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Carlyn Hunter, 2025
Oil
18x24 in
$1500.00

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I love living in Wyoming and painting outdoors. I admire the Western tradition of landscape artists recording the majesty of our surroundings. I am inspired by many well known western landscape painters like Carl Rungius and George Caitlin, Frederic Remington and many others.

Carlyn Hunter, 2025
Oil
18x24 in
$1500.00

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Carlyn Hunter, 2025
Oil
18x24 in
$1500.00

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Michèle Jenkinson, 2024
Oil
5x7 in
$250.00

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For untold years, artists have attempted to capture the grandeur of nature by placing themselves and their easels outdoors. Many are torn between trying to replicate what they see, and recording how they feel while seeing what is before them. A great example of this is Thomas Moran's painting of the Wyoming mountain that was later named in his honor. If you look at his painting hanging in the National Museum of Wildlife Art, you will see nothing at all recognizable as Mt. Moran. But what you WILL see is the awe that Mr. Moran must have experienced while standing there. I honor that plein air tradition by seeking to capture not what is before me as I paint but rather the emotion I feel while in the act of painting outdoors.

Michèle Jenkinson, 2024
Oil
5x7 in
$250.00

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Michèle Jenkinson, 2024
Oil
5x7 in
$250.00

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Susan Marsh, 2024
Watercolor
10x8 in
$225.00

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My work expresses love for the public land surrounding us. By sharing it, I hope to inspire viewers to think about the wild places they love and work to protect them. To honor the tradition of artists like Thomas Moran, whose work influenced Congress to create Yellowstone National Park, I paint landscapes in Grand Teton and Yellowstone Parks and in the Bridger-Teton National Forest. Moran's field sketches have served as a model for my work as I love the way he captured scenes with a loose style. When I paint plein air, I imagine him standing at his easel and feeling wonder over the same places I do.

Susan Marsh, 2025
Watercolor
10x8 in
$225.00

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Matt Montagne, 2025
Oil
16x12 in
$1050.00

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In my paintings I try to really tune into my emotional response to a beautiful or dynamic scene. Then the challenge is to "catch" its grandeur and awesomeness. As a boy, I used to watch Connie Schwiering and Grant Hagen, and later, great painters like Jim Wilcox, Greg McHuron and Kathy Wipfler paint the Tetons and was always amazed at how they did so. I always wanted to be able to do the same, and now I am amazed that I am able to "Catch the Tetons" and some of my love for Jackson Hole in paint. I hope I am honoring the tradition of great Teton Painters.

Matt Montagne, 2024
Oil
16x12 in
$1050.00

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Matt Montagne, 2025
Oil
16x12 in
$1050.00

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Molly Moore, 2024
Oil
9x12 in
$600.00

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From cave paintings to petroglyphs to the work of the Impressionists to me sitting in the "Studio of the Divine" choosing an inspiring composition selected from an overwhelming number of options; that is how honoring the tradition of plein air painting lives on for me today.

Molly Moore, 2025
Oil
12x9 in
$600.00

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Molly Moore, 2025
Oil
9x12 in
$600.00

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June Nystrom, 2024
Acrylic
18x14 in
$300.00

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I have painted these landscapes while standing outdoors, at my easel, while the wind blew and the light changed. This challenge of being in a place of infinite beauty and daring to try to put the feeling onto a canvas takes courage. Each week in the summer and fall I go to a place to paint a picture that might succeed in showing what I see and feel. This is what links me to Vincent VanGogh and Georgia O'Keefe, two of my favorite artists.There is an element of luck and magic in each attempt. I honor the practice of painting outdoors by going again and again, just to see what might happen each time.

June Nystrom, 2024
Acrylic
13x16 in
$300.00

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Sandra Ostdiek, 2025
Watercolor
11x8.5 in
$275.00

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Embracing the rich history of plein air painting is a relatively new adventure for me. I have found painting with the Teton Plein Air group motivating and inspiring. The mountains beckon us out to explore new locations, create, and share that experience with others. I find endless, artistic inspiration in our majestic mountains, serene valleys, and rich western culture.

Sandra Ostdiek, 2025
Watercolor
10x8 in
$275.00

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Sandra Ostdiek, 2025
Watercolor
8x10 in
$275.00

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Dee Parker, 2025
Oil
8x10 in
$400.00

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I paint in a traditional way. I try to bring impressionism into my paintings to create more excitement for the viewer.

Dee Parker, 2025
Oil
8x10 in
$400.00

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Dee Parker, 2025
Oil
8x10 in
$400.00

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Cate Smith, 2025
Acrylic
12x9 in
SOLD

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As a true beginning plein air painter I have found a wealth of inspiration in viewing the work of traditional wildlife painters such as Carl Rungius's In the Foothills (Antelope) in local museums in Jackson and Cody, Wyoming. We are so fortunate to have the opportunity to study, up close, the choices of color and brush work that these traditional plein air painters employed. These artists brought a freshness of approach that I hope to use as a springboard in developing my own spin on plein air painting.

Cate Smith, 2025
Acrylic
12x9 in
$100.00

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Cate Smith, 2025
Acrylic
10x20 in
SOLD

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Rachel Smith, 2025
Oil & Cold Wax on Aluminum
10x10 in
$375.00

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My paintings tend to have a "traditional" look, but I'm not always using traditional methods to get there. I may be a traditionalist, but I can't comfortably call myself a purist. I use water-mixable oils, and while I enjoy painting en Plein Air, the technique of alla prima has never been my default. I prefer to use my time outdoors to rough in an underpainting, make some notan thumbnails, and a quick study to take back to the studio. Since I paint mostly on aluminum, I rely on transparent layers that need to dry before painting on top. One good thing about Wyoming's weather is that it's arid enough that I can make two or three layers in a 3-hour Plein Air session, if I hurry. I also love to use cold wax, which helps the paint dry a bit faster and helps me capture the textures in the landscape. Plein Air practice has helped me: Speed up my process; Enjoy the outdoors, be present; Loosen up my brushstrokes; Simplify the scene, focus on values & shapes; Find a simple color palette that works for any landscape in JH; Form habits, come up with a consistent painting process that gives replicable results; Learn to "see", trust my own eyes vs what the camera sees; Practice! Make room for some frustration and failure, which has made me a better artist.

Rachel Smith, 2025
Oil & Cold Wax on Aluminum
10x10 in
SOLD

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Rachel Smith, 2025
Oil & Cold Wax on Aluminum
12x12 in
$425.00

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Andrew Taylor, 2025
Oil
9x12 in
$400.00

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Through time, plein air artists have always tried to capture the light in their works. My paintings work along these established lines and attempt to match some of the local color of the day with recognizable locations.

Andrew Taylor, 2024
Oil
12x16 in
$800.00

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Andrew Taylor, 2025
Oil
9x12 in
$400.00

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Sheila Tintera, 2024
Oil
12x12 in
$1500.00

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I gain so much energy and joy from working en plein air. It's all out there - endless subjects, light and color. My painting practice begins with quick "note" taking and small sketches of important visual cues on site in watercolor, charcoal or oil. Then I move to a larger canvas working quickly, and depending on the complexity of the composition, it's continued in the studio. There, from memory and sketches, I will often choose to depart from strict reality and emphasize pleasing color harmonies, patterns, and whatever the picture seems to require of me. Fairfield Porter, Milton Avery, Bonnard, O'Keefe, Lois Dodd, Barry McGlashan, and Wolf Kahn are just a few painters I look to for inspiration. To quote Jane Freilicher, "if it is a choice between the life of the painting and reality, let the rules go."

Sheila Tintera, 2025
Oil
8x16 in
$425.00

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Sheila Tintera, 2025
Oil
6x12 in
$350.00

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Judith Zimmerman, 2025
Pastel on Card
18x11 in
$300.00

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The three pieces I am submitting reflect our traditional joyous return in the spring to our home in Wilson. During the long cold winters, my husband and I live in southern Utah. The first painting, a winter scene of the back side of the Tetons, captures the longing I have for our return. Although it is frigid and stormy, there is that ray of warmth and hope illuminating the mountains. The second painting, expansive clouds dancing across the summer sky, was painted near the boundary of our property where the arrowleaf balsamroot bloom and lush greenery return each year to greet us. The third, a pastel, is from one of our traditional first drives back into the park to view this year's bounty of wildflowers. This was an exceptionally good wildflower year. I honor the privilege of traditionally returning to this place of spectacular beauty which inspires my art.

Judith Zimmerman, 2025
Oil on Gessoboard
24x18 in
$700.00

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Judith Zimmerman, 2025
Oil on Canvas
14x26 in
$600.00

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